Apparatus for treatment of stiff joints



Aug. 29, 1950 I wH 2,520,590

APPARATUS FOR TREATMENT OF STIFF JOINTS Filed April 4, 1949 Patented Aug. 29, 1950 OFFICE APPARATUS FOR TREATMENT OF STIFF JOINTS Henry G. White, Huntsville, Ala.

Application April 4, 1949, Serial No. 85,432

1 Claim.

This invention relates to apparatus for treatment of stifi joints.

An object of this invention is to provide apparatus for treating stiff joints whereby the treatment of the joints may be localized, the apparatus embodying means for discharging water or other liquid under pressure and at a predetermined temperature onto the joint so as to promote circulation about the joint and effect a relief of the cause which prevents free use of the limbs.

Another object of this invention is to provide apparatus of this kind which is simple in construction and is designed to be portable so that it can be attached to any water supply source.

A further object of this invention is to provide a water spray means for spraying fine streams of heated water under relatively high pressure onto a joint so as to induce circulation around the joint, the spray means including a hood or cup adapted to confine the spray to a particular area.

With the above and other objects in view, my invention consists in the arrangement, combination and details of construction disclosed in the drawing and specification and then more particularly pointed out in the appended claim.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a detail front elevation partly in section, of a device designed for treatment of stifi joints,

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional View taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1 on an enlarged scale,

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 33 of Figure 1 on a larger scale than Figure 1, but smaller than Figure 2,

Figure 4 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 44 of Figure 1 on a scale greater than Figure 2.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral I designates generally a housing in the form of a closed container which is adapted to be connected by means of a pipe or tubular member I I to a source of liquid pressure and heating supply. The housing ID has extending therefrom an outlet pipe or hose l2, and a valve I 3 is interposed in the the pipe or hose 12 for regulating the flow of the liquid as will be hereinafter described.

A resilient or rubber cup I4 is connected by means of a hose IE to the valve I 3, and a normally I closed or spring pressed valve l 6 is interposed between the cup [4 and the outer end of the hose IS. The cup I4 has mounted therein a substantially semi-circular pipe I! which is formed with a plurality of jet openings l8 whereby the liquid passing through the valve it into the pipe I! will be'discharged within the area Q! the, cup

It in very fine streams. The discharge pipe I! is provided so that the needle like streams of water or other liquid will strike the area which is encompassed by the cu l4 so as to promote blood circulation around the joint.

The housing {0 has mounted thereon a liquid pressure gauge IQ for determining the liquid pressure within the housing i0 and a temperature gauge 20 is also mounted on the housing H) for determining the temperature of the liquid passing through the housing.

In the use and operation of this invention, the pipe i i is connected to a source of fluid pressure supply which also includes means for heating the fluid. Valve 53 regulates the amount of fluid passing through the hose l5 and when the cup I4 is engaged with a joint or other portion of a limb, the person using this device may press the spring-pressed valve .16 so that the heated liquid will be discharged in needle like streams of water onto the joint. This device has been found to be particularly useful in treatment of stiff joints caused by arthritis or the like and due to the confining area of the heated liquid a specific part of the joint or body will be subjected to the heat and liquid treatment.

I do not mean to confine myself to the exact details of construction herein disclosed, but claim all variations falling within the purview of the appended claim.

What I claim is:

Treatment apparatus for still joints comprising a semi-spherical cup-shaped yieldable member adapted to encompass the joint being treated, a semi-circular perforated liquid spray tube on the inside of said cup member extending across the entire inner surface thereof, and means comprising a fitting centrally positioned in said cup member connecting the center of said spray tube to a source of liquid pressure supply.

HENRY G. WHITE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 913,492 Haines Feb. 23, 1909 929,113 Rider July 27, 1909 1,278,225 Schamberg Sept. 10, 1918 1,746,861 Manteler Feb. 11, 1930 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 

